In an Ashes series riddled with substandard play, English Jamie Smith managed to plumb another level of poor judgment.
Smith’s demise on the second morning of the fifth Test against Australia was called “a truly awful one in living memory” by BBC chief cricket commentator Jonathan Agnew.
Ex-England fast bowler Steven Finn, speaking on TNT, stated it was “utterly mindless”.
A Strange Session
With lunch approaching in Sydney with the hosts attempting to burgle some overs to hasten the new ball, the hosts turned to the part-timer Labuschagne to bowl some of his very occasional gentle seamers.
Smith had moved to a scratchy 46. His stand with Joe Root – who remained not out on a superb hundred – was worth 94.
The Australian side, without a frontline spinner, were using the part-time off-breaks from Travis Head from the other end.
“We should explain this setting, because it is remarkable,” commented Jonathan Agnew on Test Match Special. “Marnus Labuschagne typically bowls wrist-spin but here he is used as a bowler of short balls. There is nobody within reach near the batter.”
Against all logic, Smith obliged. From the fourth ball Labuschagne bowled, Smith moved back and tried a wild slog.
He succeeded in finding the fielder Boland, the sole fielder in the front half on the off-side, at cover point.
‘Disgusting’ – The Fallout
By doing that, he became victim to one of the most staggering wickets for an English batsman in the longest format, a moment that perfectly encapsulates the slapdash character of England’s Ashes series defeat.
“Goodness no!” cried ex-England fast bowler Agnew. “I’ve watched a lot of cricket and that is among the very worst I have ever seen.”
Former spinner Hartley, a Women’s World Cup winner with the England women’s team in 2017, chipped in: “That shot was filthy. Absolutely awful. It’s appalling.”
Finn, who won the Ashes with England during the 2010-11 tour of Australia, went further: “That’s completely senseless. I cannot believe what I’ve seen there. That’s going to be a very quiet changing room for Smith to walk back into.”
An Unsettled Innings Comes to an End
This concluded a jittery innings from Surrey’s Smith, who could have been dismissed to Cameron Green on a number of occasions prior to Labuschagne was brought to bowl.
On 22, Smith was caught, only for replays to show Green overstepped. Next ball, Smith slashed past wicketkeeper Alex Carey and Beau Webster.
Smith also top-edged Green over the slip cordon when he had 30 and later, on 34, skied a pull shot that narrowly missed the mid-on fielder.
A Slump In Form
This most recent debacle at the SCG concludes a hugely disappointing Ashes series for the wicketkeeper, extending a poor run with the bat which started in the home summer.
Following his an astonishing 184 at Edgbaston against India in July, his batting average was almost 59. Eight matches since then, it has fallen to 42.
- He has passed 50 only once in Australia.
- In the first Test, he failed to adjust to the big grounds succumbing to the short ball.
- In Brisbane, his first match in day-night cricket, he missed two vital catches behind the stumps.
- His 60 in the second innings of the third Test remains his top score of the series, yet he holed out off Mitchell Starc just as he was offering England hope of an unlikely run-chase.
Before the fifth Test he was left out from the white-ball teams for the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka and the World T20 that follows.
Doubts About The Future
Smith still has the second-best average for a gloveman that has kept in at least 20 Test matches for his country, yet his steep decline in form could raise questions about his position for the summer ahead.
“Smith is nowhere near the form he should be,” said former England captain Michael Vaughan. “This England team must learn and accept. I read something that said Jamie Smith would likely receive praise for trying to be aggressive.”
“That is the culture that has been fostered in this England side and that is why they have failed on this tour. There are times to get on the front foot but when it is so near the interval and Marnus Labuschagne is bowling short. I cannot accept that. It sums up this England side.”
